Sea Elite first and second stages?

[komedian]

Hey all, as I mentioned in my other post below (or above, idk) I'm wanting to make the jump to buying my own gear. I already have a DC so regs and BPW are next.

My base's class had us all on new Navy surplus Conshelf XIV's and I liked the ruggedness and simplicity of them a lot. I'm going through the marketplace here seeing if I can get a set for myself.

Short of that, I have read some positive things about Sea Elite regs. I'm interested in their Covert first stage since that has 2 HP ports and would let me use my DC transmitter without an adapter like I would need for single HP port first stages. I'm unsure if this is a significant issue or not but it seems clunky and like it just adds another point of failure, however I'm all ears for pros and cons of each and if the Covert is worth purchasing.

Next are their regs. I have read here the Scout is cheap but useable and makes for an ok backup, and that the Envrio is surprisingly good for a budget reg? at $290 for the Covert, Enviro, and Scout bundle, if I'm unable to piece together a good Conshelf setup would this be a good buy for someone with my use case? I have also read a lot of "just get the d6 reg and be done with it" but thats out of my price range right now unless I find a stellar used deal.

For context, I got OW cert 3 weeks ago, buddy and I have logged 25 dives in the last 2 weeks with a mix of springs, shore, and OW. Nitrox and Advanced are next week, with a lot more of the same type of diving over the next 2mo. Once back in MO I intend to get tech training and get into cave diving, and also plan on traveling for vacation dives.

Thanks for any input fellas

 

[James79]

If you are after Conshelfs, I have a Conshelf SE2 first stage, and a Conshelf Supreme first stage rebuilt and ready to go. I also have a few Conshelf 2nds of various vintage on the shelf, and some Scuba Pro 109s. Shoot me a PM if you're interested. I can send pictures, and I'm in Lower Alabama so meeting up so you could check them out hands on is an option too.
Respectfully,
James

 

[komedian]

If you are after Conshelfs, I have a Conshelf SE2 first stage, and a Conshelf Supreme first stage rebuilt and ready to go. I also have a few Conshelf 2nds of various vintage on the shelf, and some Scuba Pro 109s. Shoot me a PM if you're interested. I can send pictures, and I'm in Lower Alabama so meeting up so you could check them out hands on is an option too.
Respectfully,
James

I'll pm you

 

[SeafoamGreenMonster]

I dove the Sea Elite Scout for a couple months. I had no issues with them. They are a bit harder to breathe than some of the other regs I've used, but they are pretty hard to beat at the price point. The only complaint I have is the hoses are a touch on the short side for my tastes, and can limit how far you can turn your head left.

If you're looking for something that's a little more refined at a slightly higher pricepoint, I would recommend looking at Deep6. Their support is top-notch, and the regs have stood up to a moderate amount of abuse from Monterey shore diving.

 

[komedian]

If you're looking for something that's a little more refined at a slightly higher pricepoint, I would recommend looking at Deep6. Their support is top-notch, and the regs have stood up to a moderate amount of abuse from Monterey shore diving.

I would love to drop on a deep6 set right away but its more than I can budget. However I think I have a set of Conshelfs sourced so will probably be going with those. Thanks for the input.

 

[SeafoamGreenMonster]

I would love to drop on a deep6 set right away but its more than I can budget. However I think I have a set of Conshelfs sourced so will probably be going with those. Thanks for the input.

Awesome, glad you were able to find the set of regs you wanted!

 

[ND5342]

Interesting that you learned on Conshelf XIV's. I too learned on them 29 years ago as a Navy Diver!. The regulator is still on the Navy's authorized use list and the first stage design still can hold its own against many regulators of today. If you do go that route see if you can find a dry environmental kit to add to it, especially if you plan to dive in saltwater. The second stage breathes pretty darn good for how basic it is and of course the chrome has a nostalgic vintage cool factor. The Sea Elite Regulators are similar to the offerings by Hog / Edge. The Covert is basically the Hog D1X with a Classic 2.0 second stage. However the Covert regulator uses a plastic breathing barrel in the second stage instead of a metal one. May cause more dry mouth while diving. Not sure if there is any difference in the first stage quality. The Sea Elite Scout is similar to the Edge Nano, again not sure of quality differences. If you are not too far from Jacksonville you can check them out side by side and see for yourself .

I have many first stages of the US Divers Conshelf series but my current favorite is the SEA/ Cousteau design. Heavy as a brick but it has all the ports needed for a modern single tank regulator and the weight can actually help in a single tank trim. Not to mention it has an access port to the hp seat assembly means you can practically repair it in the field with basic hand tools. Only downside is that it has one 1/2' oddball LP port but adapters are cheap and only adds one O-ring which is already in the rebuild kits anyway.

While the Conshelf metal second stage breathes good enough for most divers, I prefer to use modern regulators with a Venturi lever and a tuning knob for turning up the breathing resistance when diving in a current and the regulator starts free flowing. Just like the Covert second stage. I like, use and sell the Hog second stages as well as first stages. The Hog Zenith second stage was designed by the same guy who designed the Deep Six regulators. If you want to keep the regulator vintage or period correct a good choice is the old Scubapro 109/156 metal second stages. A Conshelf first and metal second paired with a Scubapro 109/156 would make for a great regulator that could be used forever with proper maintenance.

 

[komedian]

Interesting that you learned on Conshelf XIV's. I too learned on them 29 years ago as a Navy Diver!. The regulator is still on the Navy's authorized use list and the first stage design still can hold its own against many regulators of today. If you do go that route see if you can find a dry environmental kit to add to it, especially if you plan to dive in saltwater. The second stage breathes pretty darn good for how basic it is and of course the chrome has a nostalgic vintage cool factor. The Sea Elite Regulators are similar to the offerings by Hog / Edge. The Covert is basically the Hog D1X with a Classic 2.0 second stage. However the Covert regulator uses a plastic breathing barrel in the second stage instead of a metal one. May cause more dry mouth while diving. Not sure if there is any difference in the first stage quality. The Sea Elite Scout is similar to the Edge Nano, again not sure of quality differences. If you are not too far from Jacksonville you can check them out side by side and see for yourself .

I have many first stages of the US Divers Conshelf series but my current favorite is the SEA/ Cousteau design. Heavy as a brick but it has all the ports needed for a modern single tank regulator and the weight can actually help in a single tank trim. Not to mention it has an access port to the hp seat assembly means you can practically repair it in the field with basic hand tools. Only downside is that it has one 1/2' oddball LP port but adapters are cheap and only adds one O-ring which is already in the rebuild kits anyway.

While the Conshelf metal second stage breathes good enough for most divers, I prefer to use modern regulators with a Venturi lever and a tuning knob for turning up the breathing resistance when diving in a current and the regulator starts free flowing. Just like the Covert second stage. I like, use and sell the Hog second stages as well as first stages. The Hog Zenith second stage was designed by the same guy who designed the Deep Six regulators. If you want to keep the regulator vintage or period correct a good choice is the old Scubapro 109/156 metal second stages. A Conshelf first and metal second paired with a Scubapro 109/156 would make for a great regulator that could be used forever with proper maintenance.

Yeah, my (small) base's dive shop got a lot of very good condition Navy surp from a DRMO auction some time ago. We use Conshelf first and second stages with the envrio kit and Cochran Navy dive comps (I wish I could find one for cheap to use along with my Suunto). I just took a liking to these regs and figure they won't be a bad place to start. And like you said, they have a vintage cool factor.

Thank you for the input on Sea Elite as well. I would like to jump straight to higher end regs like Deep 6 stuff but thats not reasonable for me right now. So figure my options are either run Conshelfs or buy Sea Elite new and upgrade from there. The Covert first stage looks like it offers what I want, and the Covert second seems like it would fit my uses well.

 

[ND5342]

If you have not bought your regulators yet, looks like you can get a Hog package at almost the same price. Both seconds are balanced. If you do end up selling the Hog regulators at a later date you will probably get more as they more well known as a brand.

Hog Classic Scuba Gear Regulator and Octo

 

[Rob9876]

I bought package-deal regulator sets for my son and I from Divers Supply, and so we both have upgraded Covert primary 1st/2nd stage and Scout Octos. So far we have a little over 40 dives on them, mixture of Caribbean and quarries, generally 60-80 degrees F, and we have been very pleased with them. We've been over 100 feet deep a number of times (deepest 115 so far) and they breathe quite nicely at every depth. We've been very happy -- seems a very nice regulator for the money.

In another thread (post all Sea Elite brand knowledge, information and experiance here. ) I mentioned that Divers Supply told me that the Covert is essentially the same regulator as the Hog D2 Classic 2.0. You can read about service costs in that thread also. Hope this helps!